In a secular country like India, Hijab has to be the matter choice and in no way should the law of this land impose restrictions, rather the judiciary and here the apex court, instead of taking a stringent view of the matter, should have become facilitators of upholding, strengthening choice in the matters that directly are connected with the individual privacy. It was Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia who noted the wrong path taken by the Karnataka High Court and made it clear that the concept of essential religious practice was not essential to the Hijab Ban.
While there has been a difference in the judgments of the two-judge bench and now that the matter will go to the Chief Justice India who will issue the necessary directions in this regard, there is a need for the judiciary to give thought to certain points: if the Hijab Ban in upheld, will that make the lives of the girls in the state of Karnataka or elsewhere in the country easy? Rather, the same is going to create hurdles in the process of ensuring that girls, especially, Muslim girls—who are facing the onslaught—get the education, which is their right guaranteed by the Constitution.
Ideally, courts are meant to interfere in matters where the set boundaries of the Constitution of India are broken or the matters where the restrictions, which go against the law of the land—in no way can be supported by the Constitution—are imposed. That’s where the intervention is needed and not particularly in the matter of what to wear and what not to, because that is already covered by Articles 14 and 19 of the Indian Constitution which talks of choice, enough to cover the Hijab controversy. At the same time, the courts are also not meant for solving matters of religion; they shouldn’t even try to go there because if they did, they would end up creating a mess of it. Last, but not least: in a country where we see campaigns like ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao,’ (Save Girl – Educate Girl) many of the girls would no longer be able to come out of their homes for education if a stringent view is taken by the Supreme Court on the Hijab Ban, ensuring the same being upheld. But, now that courts have jumped in, they better tread carefully!
